Career Path

Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologist

Overview

In this career, your responsibilities may include:

Testing specimens (bodily fluids including blood and urine, or tissue samples) for diagnostic purposes, and recording whether findings are normal or abnormal.
Performing more complex tests than laboratory technicians, often manually.
Reporting findings to physicians.
Supervising laboratory technicians.

Job Titles

In your job search, you may find listings for this career under different titles. You can find some examples of these, as well as more information about this career, at Career One Stop.

Academic Requirements

Typically requires a bachelor’s degree. Obtaining a master’s degree can make you eligible for careers with greater responsibility and higher salaries in this career pathway, if you do not already have the U.S. equivalent of a master’s degree.

Certification

Certification is required in most of the states that require licensure. Even in states where certification is not required, it could make employers more likely to hire you or offer you a higher salary.

You may be eligible for certification from the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) or American Medical Technologists.
Licensure

Licensure is required in ten states plus Puerto Rico: California, Hawaii, Florida, New York, North Dakota, Tennessee, Louisiana, Nevada, West Virginia, and Montana. Licensure requirements vary by state, but most require certification in order to obtain licensure.